First A494 River Dee Bridge public consultation event will take place in Deeside on Saturday

Work is underway to look at options for vital upgrades to the A494 River Dee Bridge in Flintshire, Transport Secretary Ken Skates has announced.

Environmental and land surveys are currently being carried out in the area and the first of two public information exhibitions will be held on Saturday, July 14 at Deeside Leisure Centre between 10am-4pm.

Saturday’s event will introduce the team behind the project, inform the public on the current situation and how they will be looking at options to improve the crossing.

The upgrade of the River Dee Bridge is identified in the Welsh Government’s ‘Moving North Wales Forward’ as a scheme for development to address the existing traffic bottleneck and overcome issues with the existing bridge.

The crossing, which was built in 1960, forms a key strategic route between North East Wales and North West England and carries more than 61,000 vehicles per day.

That figure is set to increase over the next 20 years and possible improvements are now being looked at to strengthen the crossing’s resilience.

The Welsh Government, through the North and Mid Wales Trunk Road Agent, has commissioned Mott MacDonald and their partners Richards, Morehead & Laing to examine the improvement options.

A second public information exhibition will take place at St Andrews Church Hall in Garden City on Monday 16th July between 2pm-8pm.

Cabinet Secretary for Economy and Transport, Ken Skates said:

“We are investing significant funding in the Deeside area to improve transport infrastructure and address existing traffic issues.

“The A494 River Dee Bridge improvement scheme is an important development which will improve the resilience of the existing bridge and provide opportunities for better carriageway alignment to help relieve congestion and enhance safety.

“Initial work is underway with surveys currently being carried out and the upcoming Public Information Exhibitions are a good opportunity for people to meet the team and learn more about the scheme.”

[📷 Alan Jones / Flickr ]